Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Yakowa’s body arrives in Kaduna amid tears
The remains of the Late Governor of Kaduna State, Patrick Yakowa, and that of his aide and friend, Dauda Tsoho, arrived in Kaduna airport aboard a Nigerian Air Force cargo plane at 2.45pm on Tuesday.
The bodies were received by hundreds of wailing sympathisers who thronged the airport.
Bodies of the late governor as well as those of other four, out of the six victims of Saturday’s naval helicopter crash in Okorobo, Bayelsa State, had been airlifted from Yenagoa aboard a Nigerian Air Force Super Puma Helicopter marked NAF 567 at 11.45am.
The other bodies that left Yenagoa alongside that of Yakowa and Tsoho were those of an ex-National Security Adviser Gen. Owoye Azazi’s bodyguard, Warrant Officer Mohammed Kamal; and the two naval pilots, Commander Murtala Mohammed Daba, and Lt. Adeyemi Sowole.
It was learnt that the NAF aircraft stopped at the Port Harcourt airport in Rivers State where the bodies were flown to different destinations in different aircrafts.
Yakowa and the four, as well as Azazi, were victims of the crashed Augusta 109 Naval Helicopter in Okoroba, Bayelsa State, on Saturday.
They met their death while returning from the burial of the father of President Goodluck Jonathan’s aide, Oronto Douglas. Douglas is Jonathan’s Adviser on Research, Documentation and Strategy.
The remains of Azazi, an indigene of Bayelsa, were however left in the mortuary of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, for burial on a date yet to be announced by the government.
While the bodies of Yakowa and Tsoho were airlifted from Port Harcourt to Kaduna, those of Daba and Sowole were taken to their respective home states in Kano and Lagos.
Two black caskets with silver handles bore Yakowa’s and Tsoho’s remains while three brown caskets with golden handles contained the bodies of three others.
The caskets which were covered with the Nigerian flags were accompanied by Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson; his wife, Rachel; Deputy Governor John Douglas; a former governor of the state, Diepreye Alameiseigha; commissioners and other members of the state executive council.
At the special valedictory session in honour of Yakowa at the Executive Chambers of the Government House before the late governor’s remains departed the state, were also the Flag Officer Commanding, Central Naval Command, Rear Admiral Johnson Olutoyin; commanders of the Air Force Mobility Command, the Joint Task Force, and the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Kingsley Omire, among others.
Dickson poured encomiums on the late Yakowa, describing him as a bridge builder and humble governor.
Some chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party, including the aides of the late Yakowa, attended the ceremony.
Dickson, who said Yakowa died in active service, added that his death should encourage people to live in peace and harmony.
In Kaduna, children, women as well as men wailed as the delegation from Bayelsa State, led by Alamieseigha, formally handed over the corpses of Yakowa and his aide to top Kaduna State government functionaries.
At the Kaduna airport to receive the corpses were the new Governor of the state, Mukhtar Yero; Yakowa’s widow, Amina; Senator Danjuma Goje; Senator Bola Saraki; and top state functionaries.
The Catholic Archbishop of Kaduna Diocese, Archbishop Matthew Man Oso Ndagoso; and the Catholic Bishop of Zaria, Rev George Jonathan Dodo, took turns to pray for the remains of the late governor and his aide before the caskets were transferred into an Hilux ambulance.
From the airport, the two golden caskets were driven in a motorcade through the Nnamdi Azikiwe Western Bypass to the Saint Gerard Catholic Hospital where the corpses were deposited in the mortuary.
The Senate President, David Mark, in company with his wife, Helen, was at the St. Gerard Hospital. He later proceeded to the Government House to pay condolence to Yakowa’s family.
The late governor is expected to be buried on Thursday in his home town, Fadan Kagoma in Jema’a Local Government Area of the state.
Meanwhile, one of the soldiers that moved the bodies of Yakowa and the others from the morgue into the helicopter slumped shortly after the assignment, thus causing panic and anxiety among those at the venue.
The state medical team however revived the soldier, whose name could not be ascertained, several minutes after.
The collapsed soldier was among the two groups of soldiers who took turns to lift the caskets bearing the bodies of the victims into the Air Force helicopter.
Each group, under the command of a parade commander, was made up of six soldiers.
The collapsed soldier who apparently was exhausted after the assignment slumped and was immediately rushed into an ambulance belonging to the Nigerian Air Force Mobility Command at 10.40am.
The ambulance consequently rushed the soldier to the Government House Medical Centre, where a medical team battled to revive him.
Culled from the Punch Newspaper
Monday, December 17, 2012
President Jonathan’s Effort to Purchase Another Hawker 4000 Jet Tied Up In New York Bankruptcy Court
In addition to the two new luxury helicopters ordered by President Goodluck Jonathan from the Anglo-Italian AgustaWestland at a cost of $40 million, as SaharaReporters reported earlier today, we have learned that the government made a deposit of another $9 million for a Hawker 4000 jet.
In 2012 budget an additional $12 million was budgeted to complete the purchase of the jet.
But that money is now tied up in court, as our investigation has revealed that the manufacturer, Hawker Beechraft, entered into bankruptcy proceedings in the US District Court of Southern New York last May.
Curiously, the purchase notice was initiated by one Group Captain Ma Yakubu, who gave away the $9 million using the address of “Nigerian Presidential Wing, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Presidential Air Fleet Abuja, Nigeria.” His phone number and email addresses were listed as follows: +234 8052088048 and Maminuyana@Yahoo.Com.
Our sources say this is highly unusual, as the purchase order would normally have emanated not from an airport, but from within the presidency, the Ministry of Aviation or the Nigerian Air Force.
Yesterday’s crash of a Nigeria navy executive Agusta 109E helicopter, which killed Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa, former NSA Andrew Owoye Azazi and four others, while doing private errands for presidential aide Oronto Douglas, demonstrates how public property is routinely converted to private benefit especially in a corrupt administration.
The presidency currently has at its disposal about 11 jets, many of them running errands on a daily basis for privileged officials and their relatives. When those are not enough, they call for similar equipment that belong to the armed forces, the Nigeria Police, the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, and similar offices.
“Yesterday, the naval helicopter was abused throughout the day, like a free taxi cab, until it simply fell out of the sky,” an analyst told SaharaReporters.
The two helicopters on order by Mr. Jonathan will cost Nigeria $40 million, but it is unclear how many similar equipment may be on order around the world, or have already been bought or delivered, because government officials often account to nobody. The tracking of most contracts is non-existent after they have been awarded.
SaharaReporters has written to Group Captain Yakubu in an effort to obtain further information about the aborted purchase of the Hawker 4000 jet.
The US District court has approved Hawker Beechcraft’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy as a slimmer corporation, also last week the court authorized the company to sell off its entire inventory of Hawker 4000 jets at $20 million each.
Culled from Sahara Repoters
GEN. AZAZI'S FINAL MOMENT BY ROSS ALABO-GEORGE
It was just a few minutes to 13.00hours and the service of songs was in session when our chartered Caverton helicopter landed in ancient breezy coastal community of Okoroba, hometown of Mr. Oronto Douglas, a senior aide to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. I had flown with my Uncle, Engr. Mayne David-West, Principal Consultant of Pearl Consultants, and George Kerley, Coordinator of The Jonathan Project and an unrepentant crusader of the president.
We proceeded directly to the venue of the Service of Songs. It was a ten minutes walk from the school field where the helicopter had landed, and it offered an opportunity to see the sprawling ancient community and the new developments taking place. The people were very happy. They were seeing new faces – ministers; governors; commissioners; corporate executives and citizens they only read about and saw in the news walk on the new rigid pavements of their community. I think above all, they wowed at the Nollywood stars who dazzled the natives to disbelief.Ramsey Noah, Rita Dominic, Segun Arinze et al, then the big masquerade – Kanu Nwankwo was right there. I said to myself, the children of Okoroba Town would be inspired by the time the body of Pa Douglas is finally laid to rest.
In this flourish and fanfare, he sat quiet, listening to the incisive message delivered by the Reverend Ayo Oritsejafor. He seemed consumed by the pastor’s deep rhetoric about how ephemeral life was, and how wealth and money were necessary vanity but how a life well spent is eternal in value. Still, I interrupted his intense engrossment. He was excited to see me. We exchanged pleasantries and he asked that I stay around for a chat after the pastor’s message. I did.
The General is a towering man. Dressed in a grey striped French suite and black shoes, I watched him walk in his usual calculated steps as he left the tent to the other tent where the reception for visitors was to be held. He looked fresh, like he had rested well after his surprising removal as National Security Adviser. His warmth was charming and his humility ever evident. He was led to a roundtable on the first row and he took his seat by his friend Engr. Mayne David-West whom he hadn’t seen in months. They chatted warmly while they poured themselves a little champagne. He was served soup and he ate light. In about forty-five minutes he was done. Just about then, he receives a signal that the ill-fated helicopter was on its way.
He walked around to the other tables, shook hands and made his way out. He was headed for the helicopter, but he was obviously not in a hurry. He strolled with Governor Patrick Yakowa, a governor whose humility endeared me to him. Governor Yakowa spoke softly, greeted warmly and smiled like he knew it was a final moment to be enjoyed. We walked ahead of the Governor and the General, and in a few minutes we were all at the Okoroba Primary School field.
There were a few chartered helicopters arriving and taking off. The choppy drone of rotor blades slicing through the air ruffled us a bit. The primary school was sufficiently solicitous of intervention. The classroom had neither doors nor windows, in fact it looked abandoned. While we stood inside I asked why a primary school in Mr. Douglas’s home would be this wrecked. I called a young man, and in intense curiosity I began to question him. My findings were that a new primary school was being developed and new community library built and well equipped. I was satisfied, I would have been disappointed.
General Azazi watched these happen. Now it was time to take him on. I had not seen him since his removal as NSA. He was a deep man, and I was eager to hear him say something. I knew him to be blunt in a very smart way. He would not say a thing if he had not thought it through intensely. I probed into his period as NSA and asked what his take was on the Jonathan presidency. He had lost no love for the President. He said ...”Ross, the president is very intelligent and smarter than most people know”. He talked about the Boko Haram issue with plenty caution, but was optimistic that the president would check them.
Now, we were joined by the IYC president, Mr. Miabiye Kuromiema, and I surprised the General when I fired: “Sir, it is about time the president threw Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke under the bus”. I maintained that the Jonathan presidency was haemorrhaging severely because of her continued stay as minister. I expected him to say something, his face expressionless, he remained quiet. George Kerley, a known defender of the honourable minister, quipped with a straight face: “Ross, you are right. It is time the president is told the truth... He is taking too much bullets for some of these ministers”. The General shook his head, not in approval or disapproval; he was just enjoying the chat. He brought up a few issues and we all talked with surplus warmth. We hadn’t pressed him enough when the Navy helicopter appeared within sight in the sky.
He offered us the two spare seats in the helicopter, but we declined as our chopper was at that moment already landing. He pulled George Kerley aside for a two-aside. They talked for about two minutes, and he joined Governor Yakowa again, as they strolled on the rigid pavement into the boisterous windy path of the chopper. The pilots dismounted the chopper to greet their VIP passengers; they looked smart in their military uniform. It was the governor’s and the general’s final handshake.
Mr. Darego Williams, a seasoned pilot turned business man was joining our chopper back to Port Harcourt. He cringed at the manner the chopper had taken off and didn’t stop starring at the effects of the rotor blades. I noticed he was a little uncomfortable, but then he had been off the cockpit for over two decades, so he contained thoughts.
Less than ten minutes later, we were ready to go. The captain welcomes us on board and soon after we were in the air. We had just done about 10 nautical miles when the pilot suddenly did a 180 degree turn. Mr. Darego Williams was curious and called on the captain. The captain apologized to all on board and announced to us that a helicopter had just ‘gone down’. He actually meant ‘crashed’. We were the first search party.
Less than a minute ahead, smoke plumed from the thick swampy forest. It was a clear sign of danger. We did about four low fly passes to capture the coordinates of incident site. Our helicopter had ingested the smoke and smell of burning metals, wires and flesh. We could see the helicopter and the appendage bearing the ‘NAVY’ inscription had severed from the main body. The moment was intense, we doubted the very facts we knew. We all believed some miracle could have happened; the worst case was not an option. It just could not be true.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Abu Dhabi Floods The World With Free GIS Data
The Envrionment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) yesterday launched its Enviro-Portal. It was made known by the EAD during the ESRI Middle East and Africa User Conference (MEAUC) on GIS Technology solutions at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition (ADNEC).
This portal offers access to the most up to date environmental data and information on the geolocation of flora, fauna, marine habitats and protected zones within Abu Dhabi.
Based on cutting edge GIS technology, EAD make downloadable spatial environmental data and information that have been collected since the early 1990s. The data and information available, in various raster and feature formats, are useful to professionals, researchers and students in both the Arabic language and the English language.
The portal is user friendly, you will be able to download different sets of environmental layers for your areas of interest.
Follow this link to access the portal: http://enviroportal.ead.ae
Saturday, December 15, 2012
GOV. SULLIVAN CHIME: DEAD OR ALIVE?
The governor has been hospitalized since September.
If this happens to be true, it means that Nigeria lost two governors in one day.
What a tragedy!!!
GOVERNOR PATRICK YAKOWA AND FORMER NSA AZAZI DIED IN A PLANE CRASH
It was a black Saturday in Nembe Bayelsa State as the Governor of Kaduna State Patrick Yakowa and former National Security Adviser Gen Azazi crashed in a naval helicopter.
The crash occured around 04:30pm when the duo were returning from the burial of the father of Douglas Oronto, special adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on research and documentation.
It was reported that the remains of the governor and others were burnt beyond recognition as the helicopter burst into flames.
The state has being thrown into confusion and mourning as news of the governor's death spread.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in the state to prevent any breakdown of law and order.
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